No — Jesus ate the Last Supper, not the Passover lamb; the lambs had not yet been killed.
Les Feldick teaches that the meal Jesus shared with the twelve was the Last Supper, not the Passover lamb meal. He says the custom was a regular meal eaten before the Passover lambs were killed, so the lamb had not yet been sacrificed at that point. Jesus sat down with the twelve and instituted the bread and cup at that same supper.
Matthew 26:20 — This verse records the evening meal Jesus shared with the twelve — the Last Supper that is the subject of the question.
Matthew 26:20 says, 'Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve.' Matthew then records what happened at that meal: 'And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body' (Matthew 26:26). The Old Testament command for eating the Passover lamb says, 'And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it' (Exodus 12:8). The Gospel accounts report the meal and the bread and cup, but they do not explicitly state that a Passover lamb was on the table at the Last Supper.
Les teaches that the meal Jesus shared with the twelve was the Last Supper, not the Passover lamb meal. He says the custom was a regular meal eaten before the Passover lambs were killed: 'So this is the last supper, but it's not the Passover lamb.' Les also draws attention to the seating difference — the Exodus Passover lamb was to be eaten standing, with shoes on, ready to go, while Jesus sat down with the twelve in the evening. The supper therefore came before the Passover lambs were killed.
Les says, 'when he sat down there was a regular meal that they ate before they killed the Passover lambs, if I understand Passover.' He then states plainly: 'So this is the last supper, but it's not the Passover lamb.' In his reading, Jesus and the disciples ate this meal before the Passover lambs were killed.
At that evening meal, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, 'Take eat, this is My body.' He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying by Scripture, 'Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.' Les recounts this institution of the Lord's Supper as part of the Last Supper.
Les notes that totalitarian governments arrest people at night, and the arrest of Jesus was no exception. The arrest came 'right around midnight. I think maybe even a little before.' The Last Supper and the institution of the Lord's Supper happened before that night arrest, and the mock trial followed.
Nighttime Arrest After the Supper
Les explains the arrest happened at night, around midnight — after the Last Supper — showing the supper preceded the crucifixion events.
The Last Supper Was Not the Passover Lamb
Les explicitly says this was the last supper and not the Passover lamb, because the meal was eaten before the lambs were killed; Jesus then used bread and cup to point to His body and blood.
Contrast Between Standing and Reclining
Les points out that the Exodus Passover lamb was to be eaten standing, ready to go, whereas Jesus sat down with the twelve — supporting his distinction between the two meals.
Jesus as High Priest: The Order of Melchizedek Explained
Maybe it was in, oh, I'm in Mark. Matthew, anyway, he institutes the Lord's Supper at the Last Supper at the Passover, and it's in Matthew, I'm sorry, 26. Matthew 26. I was trying to find it in Mark. In Matthew 26, verse 20, now, when even was come, he sat down with the twelve, and as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.
Why God Separated Israel: The Meaning of the Blood on the Doorposts
All right, now then, after they had proved the lamb, then verse 7, they were to take of the blood and strike it on the two sides and on the upper doorpost of the houses wherein they would eat it. Verse 8, and they shall eat the flesh in that night roasted with fire. Now here again comes that beautiful illustration of what His death on the cross really amounted to.
Why God Separated Israel: The Meaning of the Blood on the Doorposts
And so as this lamb was kept up for three days to be completely observed, the household was to look for any blemish, any sign of poor health, any sign of anything that may have been wrong with it, and if at the end of those three days the lamb was whole, then they could kill it for the Passover sacrifice. Now it's the same way with Christ. He spent that three years up and down the land of Israel.
The 8 Signs in John's Gospel — What They Mean for Israel
Alright, chapter 6, verse 3, And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there He sat with His disciples, and the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. And now you know the account. The disciples said, or Jesus said to the disciples, When shall we buy bread, that these may eat the multitude? And this Jesus said to prove Him, that is Philip, for He Himself knew what He would do.
Why Jesus Told His Disciples: Don't Go to Gentiles
He's come through His whole three years of earthly ministry, trying to convince the Jew that He was the Christ, knowing full well what Israel was going to do, knowing full well that He was going to go to that Roman cross, and that He would suffer for the sins of the world. He knew that.
Matthew 26:20: Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve.
This establishes the evening meal Jesus shared with his disciples — the event under question.
Matthew 26:26: And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
This describes what Jesus did at that meal, showing the focus on bread rather than lamb.
Matthew 26:27: And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;
This records the cup Jesus gave at the Last Supper, part of the institution of the Lord's Supper.
Exodus 12:8: And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.
This is the Old Testament command for eating the Passover lamb, which Les distinguishes from the Last Supper meal.
No. Les teaches that the meal Jesus shared with the twelve was the Last Supper, not the Passover lamb meal. A regular meal was eaten before the lambs were killed, and the lamb had not yet been sacrificed.
It matters for the timing of the crucifixion: the Last Supper happened the night before the Passover lambs were killed. Les connects the bread and cup directly to Jesus' body and blood shed on the cross.
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